Brazil Public Ministry questions project that transfers agchem registration for Mapa

The Brazilian Federal Public Ministry has issued a public statement against a bill (No. 209/2013) in the Brazilian Senate, which transfers the analysis of registration procedures of agrochemicals for the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply (Mapa). Currently, this competence is due to the ministries of Natural Environment and Health, which control, respectively, the Brazilian Institute of Natural Environment and Renewable Resources (Ibama) and the National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa).

The questioning came through a repudiation note published by the “Natural Environment and Cultural Patrimony Chamber” of the Fourth Chamber of Coordination and Revision of the Federal Public Ministry. The note justifies that is “totally contrary to our Federal Constitution to allow that the analysis of agrochemical is made under a unique bias of agronomic efficiency”.

Authored by Senator Ruben Figueiró, the project awaits an opinion of the referendary at the Human Rights and Participative Legislation Commission.

Check the full note:

REPUDIATION NOTE AGAINST THE SENATE BILL NO. 209/2013

• The Federal Constitution has elevated health and environment to a category of fundamental rights and, facing the relevance of them, it also forecasts in its awake the mechanisms for its protection (under a form of fundamental guarantee). Therefore, privates and the public power ought to guide its actions respecting these rights.

• It provides the need for production, commercialization and employment techniques control, and methods and substances that present risk to health, quality of life and the environment, which that are included agrochemicals, according to the consistently proven at the scientific scope.

• The environmental and sanitary analysis are attributed technically and legally of the Health and Environment Ministry, respectively through Brazilian Institute of Natural Environment and Natural Renewable Resources – Ibama ((Section IX, Article 2 of Annex I of Decree No. 6,099 / 07) and the National Health Surveillance Agency – Anvisa ((Item II, § 1 of Article 8 of Law No. 9,782 / 99).

• It is very contrary to our Federal Constitution to allow that the analysis of agrochemicals is done through a uniquely bias of agronomic efficiency (Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply), not considering the necessary exams under the point of views of health and the environment.

• There are not agencies specialized on health and environment at Mapa, absenting an inclusion, among its competencies, of making technical analysis of environmental and sanitary character under the terms of the Annex I of Decree No. 7,127 / 10 and Article 5 of Decree No. 4,074 / 2002.

• The analysis should be conducted by legally competent agencies and technically enabled to provide scientifically the impact of agrochemicals and, therefore, to supply subsidies to the mitigation of the environmental and sanitary impact under the terms required by the Federal Constitution.

• It could not be allowed, therefore, just one agency, Mapa, would be responsible for the procedure of authorization and registration of agrochemicals and related, centralizing the analysis of environmental and sanitary aspects for which it does not have technical competence.

• Attributing to Mapa the competencies related to the health and the environment is to drain out the competency of specific Ministry and linked agencies (such as Ibama and Anvisa), dismissing its importance and the technical capacity.

• The action of the competent agencies Health and Environment could not consist of a formal and non-binding intervention and because it is necessary to protect the right either effect, of real control of techniques, methods and substances that present risk to life, quality of life and the natural environment.

• The Law No. 7,802/89, aiming to fill this constitutional mandate, it currently requires a previous registration of agrochemicals, its components and related, after an analysis of federal agencies of three sectors – in which Health (Anvisa), Environment (Ibama) and Agriculture (General Coordination of Agrochemicals Related, linked to Mapa) – doing this way the due technical triple procedure of exam.

• The specific distribution and tripartite competencies is confirmed at the Decree No. 4,074/2002, which regulates the Law No. 7,802/1989, in articles 2º, 5º, 6º, 7º and 8º.

• Any subsequent norm that intends to exclude the tripartide analysis, or excluding the binding character, will be violating the Federal Constituion, the principle of seal setback, which prohibits a retreat – suppressing or diminishing – at the protection of fundamental rights that here, specifically, the health, life and ecologically balanced natural environment.

For these reasons, the Fourth Chamber of Coordination and Revision come to repudiate any alteration that aims to exclude the essential and binding analysis of environmental (Ibama) and health (Anvisa) aspects at the procedure of registration and revision of agrochemicals, centralizing this procedure in only one agency (Mapa).